Tortured Light
by PepperGreenTwist
Summary: If it had been a few months ago, Charlotte would've dreaded moving to the wettest place in North America. But now, no longer a mermaid, she doesn't have to worry about it, or anything magical. Except it doesn't seem like the mythical world is done with her quite yet.
1. Cold Angels

Charlotte Watsford writhed around on the floor of the forest in unbearable agony, her mouth open in a low, gutteral screams. Pain like she had never known before was tearing through her body, like her insides were on fire. Tears rolled down Charlotte's face and her fingers clutched at the dirt below her.

_'Oh, god, what is happening to me?'_ she thought frantically. She tried to get up, to maybe crawl to help, but her limbs wouldn't support her. _'Somebody help me, please.'_

As if to answer her, there was a whooshing noise next to her, and Charlotte saw two faces hovering over her, a male and female. Though she could barely see through her tears, Charlotte could still tell that the two were inhumanly beautiful. The woman had long brown hair framing a gorgeous demure face, and a statuesque man with strange bronze hair, a square jaw and straight nose, protectively holding onto the woman.

Charlotte closed her eyes as another bout of pain racked through her and she screamed again. Was this it? Were these two angels, about to take her to heaven? Was _this _what happened when you died?

The female angel knelt down, placing a surprisingly strong hand on her shoulder. "You're going to be okay, I promise. My name's Bella, what's yours?"

Charlotte opened her eyes again at the sound of the angel's comforting, melodious voice and stared up at her. She had the strangest eyes that Charlotte had ever seen. They were like liquid amber.

"Charlotte. Please, I... I don't... want to... die," she whimpered. Bella slipped her hand into Charlotte's, and she gripped it as hard as she could, but it didn't seem to hurt Bella.

"Oh, Edward, can't we do anything for her?" The angel's lovely voice was full of concern, but Edward simply shook his head.

"No, Bella. Nothing's strong enough to stop the pain. All we can do is just to get her back to the others."

If Charlotte had been able to, she would've snapped that she was right there, there was no need to talk as if she wasn't. But she was dying, so what was the point? The edges of her vision were going dark, and Charlotte felt herself being picked up by strong arms. Mercifully, while the pain was there, it was receding, and Charlotte curled up against Edward's chest, her heavy eyelids falling shut.

The last thing she heard was a voice, whispering, "Everything will be okay."

XOXOXOX

Well, that was chapter one, and next chapter we'll discover how on earth this happened. I hope you enjoyed it, and please review!


	2. Icy Nightmares

_Three Hours Ago_

The sun was starting to set, but Charlotte didn't notice. She stood on the cliff, painting the scene in front of her, one of her first since moving to the rainiest town in America a couple weeks ago.

It had only been a month after losing her powers at Mako Island, and Charlotte had withdrawn into herself, feeling more alone than ever. She hid her feelings from everyone, and for the most part she was successful. In public and at school, she remained cold and distant, and at home she was quiet. Her mother tried to find out what was wrong, but Charlotte kept quiet about everything. Not knowing what else to do, Annette offered to let Charlotte stay with her brother, Charlotte's uncle, up in Forks, Washington, where he worked as a teacher at the high school.

So far, Charlotte found herself doing okay. The kids at school were friendly enough, she was doing fine in her studies. If anything, the other students just wanted to know why she had went from sunshiny Australia to rainy Forks. But on that, she kept her lips shut. She had made a promise, and she intended to keep it.

"Excuse me, what are you doing here?"

Charlotte jumped nearly a foot in the air, and turned around, only to have her breath catch at the sight of one of the most beautiful men, no, _people _she had ever seen. He was really tall, taller than she was by a good foot, the palest skin she had ever seen, with messy dark red hair and strange black eyes. Honestly, just seeing him was making Charlotte blush and her mind go blank.

He raised his eyebrow and Charlotte realized she hadn't answered his question. Feeling rather stupid, she held up her paintbrush and indicated her canvas.

"I'm painting?" She meant to say it as a statement, but it came out as a question.

"This late?"

"I like painting sunsets."

"You've got an Australian accent. You new here?"

He narrowed his eyes, betraying the conversational tone in his voice, and Charlotte got the distinct feeling that he was studying her. No matter how good-looking he was, she wasn't some piece of meat, and this sure as hell wasn't an interregation. Hands on her hips, feeling that spark relighting, Charlotte demanded, "Who wants to know?"

The man (well, teenager really, he only looked just a year or two older than Charlotte) finally softened his gaze and laughed a little, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I'm Foster. What's your name?"

Foster held out his hand, and she hesitantly shook it. "I'm Charlotte. I moved here a couple weeks ago, I'm staying with my uncle." His hand was like ice, but Charlotte made sure not to react. There was something off about this guy, she knew that deep down in her gut, but she just ignored the feeling. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she wanted some company. The kids at her new school, while nice, weren't looking to make new friends with only a year of school left.

"Nice to meet you, Charlotte," Foster continued, giving her a smile that was equal parts flirtatious and enticing.

"Yeah, you too." She attempted to break away, but Foster continued to hold onto her hand. Charlotte looked into his eyes and just barely held back a gasp at the animalistic look in his dark black eyes. It chilled her to the bone, and when he finally let go, it left her fingers sore.

She turned around, back to her painting, thinking that Foster would leave. But instead he walked up to her and looked over her shoulder. His closeness sent a shiver down her spine.

"That's really good," he commented. "You're really talented."

"Thanks," Charlotte replied, hiding a small smile she couldn't fight. Boys, outside of Lewis, had never really gave her much attention, and she couldn't help but enjoy it. Once again ignoring the instictual feeling to get away from him, she asked, "So, do you live near here?"

Foster shook his head, looking out over the water, making no move to continue talking. The sun had all but set, and Charlotte could hear her phone vibrating in her backpack, but made no move to get it. It was her uncle, no doubt, calling her home. Well, it didn't matter, Charlotte thought as she put her paints away, she was going anyway.

She looked up, and her attention-to-detail eye caught the slight tremble going through Foster's entire body, like he was straining to stay still.

"Well, I'm need to get home," Charlotte said, packing up and putting everything in her backpack. "It was nice meeting you."

"You're not going through the woods are you?"

Charlotte shook her head. "I've got my uncle's car near the road."

She started to walk away, but Foster grabbed onto her, his strong fingers digging into Charlotte's arm. "Maybe I should walk you there." To Charlotte, it seemed like he was forcing the words out.

He looked at her with an intense stare that made Charlotte quickly shake her head. "No, it's okay." She didn't want to spend another second around this creep. When she tried to break away, though, he still didn't let go. "Let go of me," she demanded. "Let go!" He was strong, she realized in a panic, even though he wasn't all that muscular, he had an incredible strength.

To her shock, Foster instead pushed her down onto the dirt, the look of a predator on his face and a hint of a snarl on his lips. Charlotte's bag went flying, her art supplies scattering all over the ground, but she didn't notice, she only cared about getting as far away as she could. She scrambled to her feet and ran blindly into the woods.


	3. Frozen Lungs

She didn't know how where she was, or where was she was going. She just knew that she was running, faster than she had ever run before. Adrenaline and terror fueled her, and and now more than ever Charlote wished that she had her tail back. She could've dived straight off the cliff and swum to safety. Her uncle had warned her about going out so late, but she hadn't listened. Well, she decided as she ran faster, if she made it, she was never going out again.

Her foot caught on a tree root, and Charlotte tripped, falling onto the ground and letting out a small yelp in pain before quickly shutting her mouth. She stood, trying to catch her breath, looking around. The woods were dark and terrifying at night, with only the moon and stars to illuminate the ground. The moon was full, perhaps the only piece of luck she was given, giving Charlotte plenty of light to see. She scanned through the trees, trying to see if that creep was still following her. Maybe fleeing into the dark woods wasn't the smartest thing to do, but rationality had left her mind the moment she had seen Foster's terrifying eyes at the cliff.

But aside from the animals and bugs, the woods seemed deserted. Trying to slow her heartbeat, Charlotte turned-

Only to walk smack into Foster.

His cold hands gripped her shoulders, and no matter how hard she tried Charlotte couldn't get out of them.

"Let go of me!" She screamed at him. "What do you want?"

She looked up at him, but quickly had to look away. While still inhumanely beautiful, it was more like that of a gorgeous predator, like something poisonous, luring you in with it's beauty, only to attack when you got close enough

He didn't answer, instead pusing her down to the ground again. In a move that was too fast for her eyes to see, he was on top of her, pinning her arms to the ground above her with one hand. Charlotte was simultaneously scared to death and curious. How had Foster moved that fast? How on earth had he caughten up to her without her hearing him? He wasn't even seemed out of breath.

Almost gently, Foster pushed the hair off her shoulder and tilted her head back and to the side, exposing her jugular to him.

"What are you doing?" she asked quietly. Tears were pricking her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

"Shh," he whispered.

"Look," Charlotte began shakily, "If you're going to kill me-"

"I'm probably not going to kill you," Foster said, not exactly assauging her fears. Charlotte heard him taking in a deep breath and realized that he was actually smelling her. It took all of her willpower not to throw up as he did so. "I've never smelled anyone like you," he continued. "You're absolutely intoxicating."

Shudders ran through Charlotte, but she continued to talk. "What do you want from me?" she asked.

As if to answer her, Charlotte felt his teeth dig into her, breaking her skin and letting her blood flow into his mouth. Charlotte screamed as loud as she could, both in pain and hoping that someone would hear her and help her. Foster was drinking her blood, she realized with disgust. Not even bothering to silence her, he was slurping down her blood like there was no tomorrow.

Slowly, Charlotte stopped screaming. She was drifting in and out of consciousness as her blood was being drunk, and all she could comprehend Foster's heavy weight and icy body on top of her, his suprisingly sharp teeth in her neck. She stared up at the full moon, and couldn't help but feel like it was mocking her, which was a silly thought, but she thought it anyway.

Through fuzzy hearing, she could hear someone calling out. It was a deep, male's voice and Charlotte started to wonder if you heard things during blood loss.

But it did cause Foster to look up, so she supposed it wasn't her imagination.

"Dammit," he muttered, standing up and sniffing the air. "A wolf." There was disgust in his voice, but Charlotte didn't have time to wonder what he was talking about. Foster stooped over and picked up her still body, bridal style.

Then he was running, and even in her barely conscious state, Charlotte could tell they were going extremely fast.

_Maybe he's a vampire,_ Charlotte thought muddily, laughing quietly to herself before passing out in his arms.


	4. Chilly Darkness

"Wake up, Charlotte."

_Smack!_

A hard hand struck Charlotte's cheek and she groggily opened her eyes, groaning at the stinging pain. Looking under her eyelashes, she saw that she was in a small shack of some kind. Jagged fingernails gripped her chin and she was forced to look up.

Immediately, she wished she hadn't.

Foster's eyes were blazing red, and there were still traces of her blood on his lips and chin. His sharp teeth were bared. Charlotte winced and closed her eyes against his evil face.

"Charlotte," he began, "Do you know what I am?"

She didn't respond, just looked down at the floor. She didn't really care, she was sure that she was gonna die. She just didn't know why he was taking so long, but if the end result was the same...

"I'm a vampire, Charlotte."

"Okay," Charlotte muttered through jagged breaths. Even in her confused state, that fact was apparent. She brought her hand up to hold her cheek and realized that she wasn't tied up or anything. "So, are you gonna eat me or something?" She laughed quietly. At this point, Charlotte didn't care anymore. There, in his red, soulless eyes, she could see the truth of what she was. Stupid. Far too trusting and jealous. This is what she deserved.

"I'm gonna make you a vampire too," Foster responded.

"I don't want to be a vampire," Charlotte whimpered helplessly. "Why would you even want me?" As suicidal as she was thinking, she couldn't help but feel sorry for herself. Heck, if it was her last night on earth, she had a right to feel sorry for herself.

Foster gently picked up her arm, ignoring her question. Charlotte's heavy eyes traveled from his hand up to his face again. "This is gonna sting a little, Charlotte." He chuckled darkly and Charlotte winced at the sound. "Well, actually, to be honest, it's gonna feel like a fire consuming your entire body. Quite frankly it's gonna hurt a lot."

_I hate you__**.**_ Charlotte stared up at him, trying to will a hole into his skull. She could see it, actually. If she had her powers back... She couldn't help but smile at the thought of everything she would've done to him. Swept him in a gust of wind and dropped him off that cliff, then boiled him in the raging water below before freezing him in a block of ice

Foster saw the dark grin she was giving him, but didn't care what it was for. The venom was collecting in his teeth, and it was taking everything he had not to kill her and finish eating her delicious blood. He held her soft, vulnerable arm up to his lips, sinking hs teeth in and letting the venom flow into the broken skin. Charlotte was screaming again, but it was all white noise. She slumped over onto his shoulder, sobbing heavily, but he just continued.

Then suddenly, he was gone, and Charlotte could feel the fire raging through her body, just like Foster said it would. She looked up and saw the door, swinging open a little. If she could get out, maybe something would finish her off. Foster was nowhere in sight, but if it was true, if she was turning into a vampire, well, then something needed to stop her. She wouldn't hurt more people by becoming an undead creature of the night.

With great effort, Charlotte crawled out of the shack, and into the forest. Her vision was spinning, but she managed to stand up and walk a few paces, gritting her teeth through the pain. But eventually, it became too much, and she simply fell, writhing in agony on the forest floor, alone.


	5. Morning Breaks

Bella ran ahead to let the other know what was going on, and Edward continued to carry Charlotte. She was still shaking a little, her eyes rolling back and forth very erractically but other than that she was still. Edward had tried several times to read her mind so that he could find out what had happened to her, but he couldn't hear anything.

When he finally made it to the house, Edward was glad to see his whole family waiting for them. Carlisle met him outside, Emmett and Esme at his side.

"Edward," Esme said softly, "Did you see who did this?"

"No," he replied, carefully handing Charlotte over to Emmett. "When Bella and I got there, whoever did it was gone, she was by herself. We found her crawling from shack in the middle of the woods."

They all went inside and Emmett gently set the unconsious newborn down on the couch and Carlisle looked her over. "The venom is setting in," he explained calmly. "She should wake up in a little while. Edward, Bella, do you know anything about her?"

"No," Bella replied. "All she was able to say was that her name was Charlotte, that's all." She walked out the door, saying over her shoulder, "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go check on Renesmee."

Carlisle shook his head, "Bella, I think you should stay at home with Nessie, we don't know who could've turned this poor girl, or where they are. Just stay there and keep her safe." Bella nodded her understanding before walking out the door. Edward started to follow, but Carlisle stopped him. "No, Edward, I might need you, there may be some answers in her thoughts."

"I've already tried, but after we found her, there was nothing but white noise in her head. It's not like Bella's shield though, more like something is covering her thoughts to keep me from reading them." He looked over at his sister, "Alice, did you see anything?"

She shook her head. "No, I've been looking, and I just... can't see anything. Whoever did this, they're definitely hiding themselves."

"Okay," Carlisle said, "We need to find who turned her, get him away from here. Edward, you, Emmett and Jasper, go out to the shack where you found Charlotte, do whatever you can to find them."

"Let's do this," Emmett smiled darkly, cracking his knuckles.

Their attention was diverted when Charlotte began to stir. The bite marks that had been inflicted on her had healed, the small scratches she had obtained from running in the forest were completely gone. But more than that, her appearence was different. Her dark red hair seemed brighter with different shades hilighting it, the slight teenage acne she had had was completely gone, and her skin was now very pale.

As the sun finally came up, Charlotte's eyelids opened, revealing bright crimson eyes.


	6. Fiery Beginnings

The first thing she noticed was that her throat was burning.

The first thing she thought was that either she was dead or now she was a vampire.

The first thing she heard was the sound of people speaking.

"Is she awake?"A haughty female's voice asked.

"Just give her a minute, Rose," someone said patiently.

It appeared that she was a vampire. Without moving the rest of her body, Charlotte raised a hand to feel her teeth. They weren't any more sharp than they were last time, but that didn't necessarily mean anything.

Charlotte sat up, and saw that now she was in a very posh place. Not only that, but her vision had suddenly gone high-definition. She could see all the dust mites floating in the air, the grain in the wood paneling, and when she looked out the window, she saw the forest in amazing detail. She could hear the birds singing clearer than ever, the ocean hitting the shore who knows how far away, and animals foraging in the forest. She stumbled back, her senses overwhelming her, but luckily someone caught her.

"Are you okay?" the person asked, and Charlotte quickly regained her composure. She broke away and looked around to see a whole group of completely gorgeous people. There were three women and four men: two brunettes, a pixie-like one who looked to be in her late teens, and the other who looked like she was in her mid-thirties;, a blonde, easily the most beautiful person Charlotte had yet to see, also in her late teens, early twenties. There was a burly curly-haired man, a scarred blonde who was holding the pixie girl protectively, an older, blonde man who was looking her over carefully, and Charlotte got the distinct impression that he was in the medical field. Also, to her relief, the one who had rescued her was there too. Edward, she recalled, that was his name. Charlotte looked around, wondering where Bella was. They appeared nicer than Foster, but she kept her guard up anyway.

"What is going on?" Charlotte demanded, except she already knew. Foster had told her what she would become. But it couldn't hurt to dream. "Who are you people?"

The blonde man stepped up to her. "My name is Carlisle Cullen, this is my wife," the older brunette woman stepped forward. "Esmé." He nodded to the scarred blonde and pixie, "This is Alice and Jasper."

Alice smiled and stepped forward, hugging her tightly. Awkwardly, Charlotte raised her hand and patted her on the back. "I'm so happy to meet you," Alice chirped happily, breaking away.

"Yeah," Charlotte muttered, put off by her cheerfulness. "Nice to meet you too."

She looked over Alice's shoulder to see Jasper watching them like a hawk, with a look of intensity that scared Charlotte to no end. The scars didn't help it.

"Okay, Alice," Edward muttered, "Give her some space."

Alice broke away, and continued the introductions. "This is Rosalie and Emmett, and Edward you already met."

"It's good to meet you guys," Charlotte smiled. She absent mindedly rubbed her still burning throat, and she noticed everyone immediately stiffened. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Charlotte, are you aware of what has happened?" Carlisle asked.

She gritted her teeth, and clenched her hands. "Fos-" she stopped herself from saying his name. "The man who attacked me, he said he was a vampire, that he would make me one as well. Is that what happened?" she asked bitterly. "Am I vampire now?" She breathed deeply and rubbed her throat some more. Why did it hurt so much?

That's when she caught the scent, the sweetest she had ever smelled. Sweet and seductive and powerful and full of promise. Charlotte had never done drugs before, but she sure did feel like she was. It was calling out to her, not unlike the way the full moon used to. She never thought she'd feel this way again.

"Charlotte, don't-"

The rest of Carlisle's sentence was lost to Charlotte as she ran out the door.


End file.
